Of heroes, villains and all that lays in between
by la-perla's mermaid
Summary: The season finale from Alexis POV, all actions carry their consecuences. Alexis is pushed too far by the injusticies over the finale so she finally takes things into her own hands  thanks Tiff  by the way i don't own anything Castle belongs to ABC
1. Chapter 1

John walked out of the elevator following his new boss. It was his first day as an intern on the ICU ward, he was glad to be working in one of the most recognized hospitals on the country, too bad his boss seemed to be a complete jerk, the fact that he was the most experienced intensive therapy specialist on the east coast blew up his ego and his dark sense of humour.

-"And this is the garden"- Dr Goldberg said sardonically, before John could ask he continued –"the place is filled with plants, its good for your training since these patients are quite complex on management but if you screw up you won't hear many complaints, at least not from them. This is mister cactus"- he said pointing at the patient in 435c –"doesn't need that much care to survive, he's been here for years. This one is miss poison ivy"- He pointed at the patient in 436a –"practice all you want not even my dumbest interns have managed to kill her, she flatlined at least three times but keeps coming back for more. And this"- He signalled ceremoniously at the private room at the end of the hallway. –"is the orchid, our beautiful little flower. As you can see she has her own greenhouse. Careful with this one you have to chase away her relatives all the time, especially her fiancée he's always fussing around her."-

It was true in spite of all the tubes and machines you could see that the woman inside was beautiful. She was in a very expensive room reserved for VIP patients, spacious with wide windows and a balcony that showed a breahtaking view of the city along with a large plasma TV right in front of it, next to the bed there was a large couch an a small table. John wasn't as cinically cruel as his boss but he did believe it was useless to provide such luxury to a person (yes person not plant) who could not use it, until he noticed that the couch had clothing on top of it, he realized all the extravaganza meant more to the loved ones around her than the actual patient.

-"Gunshot wound that caused massive blood loss, they fixed her up but by the time the blood vessels were closed there was brain damage, she came here over a month ago. As you know we don't say someone is on a persistent vegetative state until its over three months so there's still hope for her."- Dr Goldberg then showed a small sign of humanity allowing for once a sad smile –"Of all the plants here this is the one you really need to take care of, orchids are delicate"- Both men turned and saw a young red haired girl facing them, the anger in her eyes made John cringe.

-"Take… it… back…"- She said facing Dr Goldberg, shaking with hurt and rage

-"I beg your pardon"- the old doctor said, knowing he had screwed up but being too stubborn to admit it.

-"You called her a plant, take it back before I literally shove your words down your throat"- Alexis said taking a step towards the doctor who could only mutter an incoherent phrase

John saw a sad looking man walking towards them holding two cups of coffe and knew that if he didn't do something fast things would go south.

-"Im sorry for what my colleage said, he was just showing me around the place and he has the habit of speaking without thinking fist, my name is Dr. Celucci I will take care of the patient, Dr Goldberg was on the way out"-

The tall, sad looking man stood puzzled by the young girl and handed her one of the cups

-"Whats going on here?"- Castle said with a raw voice

If the rumours about mr Castle's temper were right Dr Goldberg knew that if he didn't leave soon he might end up as a patient on the garden himself, so he muttered a pathetic excuse an walked out of the ward as fast as he could.

Alexis chose not to mention the incident to her father for she knew it would only cause more grief, he sat beside Beckett's bed and held her hand as he always did. She was about to sit on the couch next to him but he told her

-"Time to go to school pumpkin, grandma is taking you she's on the way here"-

Alexis didn't feel like going to school, compared to everything that was happening around her arithmetic, geography and filosofy seemed unimportant

-"I really want to stay dad, you know my teachers said they understood if didn't go"- She said with her best puppy eyes, it that didn't work her pounting would, he always fell for it

-"you skipped way too many days already and your grades are showing it"- He gave her a weakening smile and Alexis knew it would only take a little more effort to get what she wanted. Richard was about to give up when his mother saved the day.

Martha stepped into the room, said hi to everyone including Beckett and repeated the same question she always made whenever she came to the hospital

-"Any changes?"-

-"No, but she looks better"- Castle said caressing her hair

Martha gave Alexis her bag and dragged her out, -"off we go dear"-

She wailed the entire way out of the hospital, right before Martha led her to the vehicle she played her last card, her grandma wasn't as easy to manipulate as her dad

-"I have to stay with him I think he needs me, he needs us .We can't just leave him alone in a time like this"- The moisture in here eyes wasn't an act, she was in fact telling the truth

-"Right now Alexis being alone is the best for him. let your father collect his thoughts, you can visit Beckett after school"- Martha said climbing the car.

Alexis resigned until she remembered something, she had left her cellphone on the table next to the bed. She told her grandma to wait for a few minutes, she ignored Martha's voice when she called her back.

Alexis went inside Beckett's room panting, and the image before her tore her heart in pieces. It was the beginning of the end for the innocence her uptown sheltered bringing had kept her in, reality from now on would claw inside her soul, changing it.

Her father, the rock and sourse of stability in her life was dishelved into tears that poured over the white sheets were Beckett laid.

She had seen her father going through hard times before but he never broke down "in front of you that is. He's not as strong as you think he is as frail and breakable as any other human being" a part of her conscience chanted in her head killing part of her childhood. Martha was behind her trying to catch her breath and saw the entire scene, both women turned on her heels and left without saying a word.

It wasn't until almost an hour later that Alexis realized her grandmather was taking her home instead of school, raising an inquiring brow she got her answer

-"I don't think you'll be able to focus on your studies today, you bearly slept last night go get some rest"- Martha said avoiding eye contact, she had no idea of how to handle the situation in front of her.

Alexis didn't feel like talking at all, so she dropped into her bed and stared at the roof lost in thought. Near noon the phone in her bedroom rang, she knew it was Ashley before she even picked it up, she tried to speak but her lips refused to move.

-"Alex is that you?"-

-"Yeah its me"- the monotone in her voice did not sound human

He sighed, knowing it was worse than he imagined, useless was to ask if she was alright for he knew she was definetly not.

-"Im coming over baby hold up"- he chased the first taxi that passéd his way

He took her for some hot chocolate to a café near her house, her comfort drink of choice in her favourite place, she drank slowly and said almost nothing the whole time

-"Talk to me"- He implored

-"Beckett was a heroine you know? at least my heroine. She was the kind of woman who could kick ass and chase for bad guys in stiletto's and fight with criminals without ruining her makeup, she fought for what was right and tried to make the city safer."- She drew a shaky breath –"Look what she got for it, she's no heroine anymore just a fucking orchid in a half dead garden"- She dug her nails in the wooden table

-"orchid?"- Ashley was afraid to ask

-"A pretty plant living in a greenhouse"- She mocked chocking on her tears.

-"Oh"- was all he could say about it

-"And my dad? No one gave him enough credit for it but he saved the people of this city more times we could think of, he could dodge bullets and still have something witty to say about it. He was strong and brave even if he never bragged about it, he made me proud so many times cause he always fought for his dreams and never went for the easy way in life."- The sadness in her eyes were infinite but no tears ran just yet.

-"He is still here, he's with you"- Ashley tried to throw a silver lining on her dark thoughts

-"No he's not, dad got so broken for all of this that I don't think anything will put him back togheter. He lost hope I saw it this morning"- she shook her head and wiped the tears from her eyes.

-"I know you feel defeated right now but things will get better you just have to have some faith"- He held her hand gently

-"I'm not so sure about it, if the heroes get destroyed by the villains who the hell will fight against them? My heroes lost and the bad guys are still out there, as far as I can see Ashley, they won"- She looked at the window, disgusted at the people that walked by living their dayly lives not knowing or caring for the fact that their world was going to hell.

Se gave her final statement of the discussion to nobody in particular with her stare lost in the view before her –"The bad guys won, and there's nothing to do about it"-


	2. Chapter 2

It was another day in Alexis' life having a friendly conversation with her dad before he went to the hospital again, knowing he wouldn't come back until late at night.

On the outside things were beginning to look normal again but in reality there were many changes, the biggest and most painful one was the relationship with her father. Ever since the shooting Richard could barely keep it together, in front of her he pretended to be strong and in control but on the inside he was crumbling.

Alexis knew that showing her anger and pain would not help her dad in the slightest because he had too much of a cross to bear already, so she kept those feelings deep inside her heart and put op a charade in front of him. She played the part of the obedient daughter, perky enough to show him she was all right but at the same time letting him know she empathised with his loss. The pretending from both their parts created a wall of lies and cordiality that inadvertively drew them apart.

Martha was not oblivious to this, realizing her support was not enough to salvage the situation she came up with an idea. Having heard from Alexis the "orchid" comments from the doctors she asked Richard if they could move Beckett from the hospital into their penthouse. The detective was still comatose but her physical state was stable enough, with the right equipment and personnel she could be accommodated on the guest room. If not the house on the hamptons would be a more spacious and safer place.

The experienced actress hoped that with Beckett on their home Richard would not spend the entire day in the hospital and perhaps he would reconnect with his daughter, it would also be fair for the detective. Martha believed that if the young woman was going to die she should do it surrounded by her loved ones on a home and not in a cold hospital while mocked and compared to a vegetable.

She had discussed with Jim about it and he agreed, but with one condition that froze her son's blood:

By the time Beckett turned three months from being in a coma he would pull the plug, he knew his daughter would not want to spend the rest of her "life" in that state.

A storm would form by the time that deadline occurred and Martha feared it, her son wasn't going to give up on Kate and she doubted he'll change his mind in less than two months, but then… you can always hope for miracles.

…..

Part of Alexis pretending included going to school and pick up her grades, listening to her obnoxious English teacher didn't make it easier.

-"As for many of the classic novels and even movies we can almost se a pattern into it and that is no coincidence because there is a guide if you'll like to call it known as the "path of the hero" in witch the main character goes trough a fantastic quest aided by several characters and victimized by others, still in the end the main character is turned now into a hero and succeeds in spite of all"-

Her built up rage found its way out, she was done with anything that involved happy endings when it came to heroes, her hand raised sharply and she pierced the dozing atmosphere of the classroom with her voice: -"What if it doesn't?"-

-"Excuse me?"- He said lifting one eyebrow

-"What if the hero doesn't succeed, what if he or she dies?"- Alexis challenged

-"They always win, duh. What kind of lame hero wouldn't"- One of her classmates challenged from across the room, Alexis was about to stand up and blow that dumbass mouth shut.

The teacher continued unfazed, while Ashley pulled her arm so she would stay sit and get out of trouble.

-"Ah yes the death of a hero, there have been in fact many examples, from superman in one of DC comics to Sherlock Holmes. Heroes have in fact the same dynamic of villains when one goes away another one takes their place. There are as far as I know two options, take Sherlock Holmes by example. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle got tired of his own character so he killed him in the hands of his long known enemy Moriarty, but the readers wouldn't take it, in the end the fictional character became stronger than the author so he brought it back to life on the next novel."-

-"That would mean that no matter how hopeless things look sometimes the hero does come to life"- Ashley told Alexis meaningfully, trying as always to give some ray of hope.

-"The other option is not so common as the last one, on the 90's comic strip Superman died but let Lois Lane pregnant therefore his son would continue down his father's path. Another example is your own father's creations. When Derek Storm died he was replaced by Nikki Heat, and if that character dies as well I'm pretty sure another will come up"- The stuck up teacher didn't watch the news so he didn't know how much he had hurted his student

Alexis didn't know weather to scream, cry or throw a punch at the unbearable man until his final statement put a piece of an unmade puzzle on her head.

- "Heroes, fictional or not, are much stronger than the flesh that embodies them. If one of them is taken another one rises because a world without them is inconceivable"-


	3. Chapter 3

It was with a bittersweet anxiety that Alexis awaited for Beckett to be installed at their house on the Hampton's, there were many previous preparations before they could even leave New York. She went to buy some groceries at the 7/11 nearby including things that would make the detective's room cosier and more comfortable, such as scented candles and fresh flowers. She would go by a pet store too, Ashley told her that small animals were often used on comatose patients and disabled children, causing sometimes miraculous results, and in deed her family needed a miracle.

Martha was trying to prepare Richard for Beckett's probable death, at this point there was technically some hope but had dimmed exponentially. Nonetheless the stubborn writer refused to even consider the idea.

Alexis saw them fighting the day before, it was late at night and she was woken by the sound of voices that came from the living room. She saw her dad, grandma and Beckett's father arguing, she eavesdropped hidden by the shadows of the dimly lit room.

Jim Beckett was making his point and her grandmother tried to reason with him

–"Don't you see it Richard? What you are proposing is to keep her trapped in her own body. I didn't know Katherine as much as you but even I can see this is not what she would want"-

Castle roared:

-"Damn right! You don't know her, you have no idea of how strong she is, Beckett WILL come back and I won't let any of you to pull the plug before she gets a chance to do it"-

Her father had showed such violent fierceness it scared her, she was now convinced she would never have her father back, at least not the funny playful guy that shared his own childish spirit with her.

Jim let a few tears escape his eyes and raised a white flag

-"It is too soon to have this conversation; we'll pick it up two months from now. But there is something that must be clear I'm her father you are just her friend, a wonderful friend but still… when it comes to take the decision it will be up to me and you will have no legal ground to stop me"-

Before a massive war took place on her living room Alexis came out from her hiding, if she knew them, her presence might be enough for them not to jump at each other's throat. Her oversized pink pj's and fuzzy flippers would add some extra persuasion.

-"Daddy? Is everything all right?"- She was way too old for this little girl act but it worked

-"Oh pumpkin I'm sorry I didn't mean to wake you up"- He went from scary raging guy to sweet loving father in less than a minute, it made her sick of how good he was getting at hiding his feelings in front of her.

Jim excused himself and left, Martha claimed to have an appointment and also left in a hurry. It was 2 am for crying out loud they were both running away from him. She gave him a hug and left him with his thoughts, staying by his side would cause another role play of lies and pretend, none of them were up for it.

Back at the grocery store, it was useless to buy bear claws for Beckett knowing she could not eat it, but there is nothing wrong with a little hope even if it turns to a delusion.

Her sad thoughts were interrupted when a robber entered the store, yelling and waving his gun around, he pointed it at the teller

-"Open it up bitch"- he said pointing at the register

The woman was so scared she froze which only caused the criminal to enrage and beat her up; she crawled into a fetal position on the ground and told him to take anything he wanted.

-"How can I take it when you won't open it you pathetic fat bitch!"- He was screaming now.

It didn't take a trained police officer to know things were getting out of control fast. Alexis saw it from her hiding spot, crouching behind a shelf. It was only a matter of time until that scumbag pulled the trigger, kill an innocent woman and destroy her family and all the ones that loved her.

Acid bile rose through her throat, this is what happens when the heroes are defeated; villains do whatever they want because no one's there to stop them.

"Heroes, fictional or not, are much stronger than the flesh that embodies them. If one of them is taken another one rises because a world without them is inconceivable"

The words echoed on her conscience and another piece of a puzzle fell in her head. If her heroine couldn't be here to save the day it was up to her to do what was right, simply because no one else would.

Slowly she rose to her feet, walking towards him in a stealth she never thought she had, a large bottle of cheap whisky found its way into her hand and before she could even think about it she smashed the bottle into the robber's head. It didn't break and splintered like in the movies, it only maid a loud ugly noise as the skull broke while silver cracks appeared on the bottle's surface. Later on she would remember the pool of blood that formed behind his limp body but not the twenty five blows and kicks she provided him afterwards.

Time became an abstract idea, suddenly lucidity came back and she was standing in front of Ryan and Esposito, red and blue lights invaded her vision along with the sound of ambulances approaching.

It only took a moment of mental weakness and a bottle of whisky for the world to stop making sense.


	4. Chapter 4

Sandra was in her new office, smiling to herself. People said that when a door closed a window opened and right now a broad window had let sunshine in, big time.

Back in the 7th precinct she was a star, one of the finest cops that ever graced that place. She had recently solved not one but three homicides related to a drug case, de DEA used all the evidence she collected along with the suspects to bring down the entire cartel. Sandra Bannon took her well deserved credit, which turned her into the favourite of all the politics that wanted to brag about safety on the streets. So when she accepted to become captain of the 7th she knew she had the entire police squad wrapped around her little finger. After all, the current captain was an old drunken jerk that did nothing but yell and bully around.

Of course you don't make it to captain at the tender age of thirty five with a high profile case and hard work alone, she had lots of connections, mostly from her family, and a brilliant political mind to go with her striking looks.

But just when things looked too perfect to be true captain Montgomery had the nerve to die and rain on her parade. Days before she took the charge the bosses above decided she should better head the 12th and bring some order onto the shaken precinct. That meant the old fart would continue to make everyone miserable over her beloved 7th and she would have to fill the massive shoes of the martyr Montgomery had become.

For the disgruntled officers of the 12th she was nothing but a high climber with more connections than common sense, nobody could look pass the fact that Sandra was only three years older than their star cop, another martyr called Katherine Beckett.

Ruling over the 12th was difficult close to impossible. Every single officer disrespected her and disobeyed her orders, especially detective Becketts' pets: Ryan and Esposito.

Those two were nothing but trouble ever since she took charge. With Beckett on a coma the pair took the chore of finding her shooter, they worked almost twenty four seven and became the most celebrated cops on the entire station and everyone in there begun to look up to them. They became the true leaders, not her.

The dark scenario lit up that afternoon when a cute red headed girl stepped into the precinct with both officers at her side, they were guarding her with such over protectiveness that Sandra knew she was some how related to the Puerto Rican and Irish cop.

By the time she read the report of what happened the new captain had to contain herself not to salivate over the sheet of paper.

-"Sooo"- she said containing her laughter –"According to the declarations a thief tried to rob a store and somehow, some one decided to knock him out and beat the shit out of him. Am I right?"-

-"We believe it might have been an accomplice, maybe they had a fight or maybe they were on drugs"- Esposito said with his best poker face

-"uh-hum"- She feigned innocence –"and what about that red headed girl you guys were shadowing?"-

-"she was in the store during the rob, she's Castle's daughter so we talked to her, unfortunately she didn't see anything, she had her nose to the ground the whole time"- Ryan explained

Sandra had enough, if she wanted to put her plan in motion she couldn't waste more time

-"Right so the blood spatters on her shoes happened by accident? Don't you dare to bullshit me by saying she crouched over the guy to see if he was alive, that would explain the blood on the soles of her shoes but the spatter of blood on the rest of her clothing is obviously caused by impact, I bet that if I look below her gloves I'll see some lacerations on her knuckles."-

Both detectives were stunned, for someone who obviously didn't have enough experience she was a keen observer. Especially since she saw Alexis from the distance.

Ryan took one last try hoping to reach the cold hearted woman.

-"Captain she didn't know what she was doing it wasn't her fault"-

-"Of course not, given the nature of the attack and the girls previous history she would probably fit in the description of transitory psychosis, which is not punishable by the law. So why would you idiots try to cover this up?"- Sandra said exasperated.

-"For one Castle is going through a very difficult moment and an attempt of murder trial on his daughter would be much more than he could handle, also Alexis is a good kid and a straight A student, a criminal record would ruin her chances to go to a good college"- Esposito implored, Sandra loved the helpless look on his face.

-"Besides if she goes to trial there is the chance, though little, that she is in fact declared guilty"- Ryan implored.

-"I will give you two choices, you can come clean about this before it blows up on your faces and your little girl ends up in you can let me handle this mess and I will bury it so deep not even the devil will be able to dig it up."- She told them bluntly

They were staring at her wide eyed, not knowing whether she was crazy or pulling their chain, she continued

-"But for a favour so big there is a price to be paid, if you are willing to pay for it your little princess goes back to her charmed life as an innocent witness"-

-"What is the price?"- Ryan shivered

-"Your total and most loyal obedience"- She told them with an evil smile –"From now on both of you will be my slaves, I say jump you say how high and the moment you keep something from me or do anything behind my back I'll make sure your little secret gets out. Is that clear?"-

-"Yes Captain"- Both man said in unison

-"What do you choose?"-

-"I choose to be your bitch captain"- Ryan answered without doubt.

-"Me too Captain"- Esposito said

And just like that Sandra was back in the game, after Castle and Beckett these guys were the most popular and respected on the precinct, with them on her absolute control it was only a matter of time before the rest of the police officers followed.

….

Martha didn't care if Captain Bannon was the manipulative bitch everyone said she was, that woman saved Alexis and her son of a horrible trial and not needed grief. So when Sandra invited her to her luxurious penthouse she didn't doubt in saying yes.

It was Lanie who told her the truth of what had happened, at first she was outraged but as she calmed down and thought about it she made a connection to her own nature and her son's. The Castle family carried a dark secret, Rick was a wonderful person and one of the sweetest man she ever met, but when mess around or pushed beyond his limit he had, on scarce occasions, turned violent. Martha herself had on her younger years a few fits of rage, all well justified of course.

Sandra didn't look at all as Martha pictured her. She was a beautiful woman with piercing dark eyes, blonde hair and fair skin, she could throw charming smiles without any effort and her melodious voice could have easily belonged to an opera. Her apartment was exquisitely decorated; it was obvious she didn't get it on a public service salary. Sandra invited her for tea as she sat on the soft couch. They engaged on small talk for a while until the captain chose to go straight to the point.

-"Your granddaughter called me last night, she said she didn't wanted to lie anymore and face justice for what she did"-

-"Don't worry I'll get some sense into her"-

-"Good, I already explained her that Ryan, Esposito and Dr. Parish had put themselves on the line for her, if she told the truth right now they would get on serious trouble."-

-"She knows what is on stake here, the poor girl feels guilty and is going through a rough time right now, like all of us."-

-"True, it is a blessing that the perp didn't die but I'm afraid the forecast on his health is not good. If he dies, which is quite likely, it will have a serious effect on her conscience and the case in general, you must prepare her so she doesn't confess."-

-"You have my word"-

-"That's all I need. Oh one more thing, there is something else you and your son should keep in mind"-

-"What is it?"- Martha braced herself

-"Taking someone's life changes a person, getting away with is even worse"- Sandra said with the same calm someone would use to describe the weather. Martha was afraid of that woman that now had complete control over her family.


End file.
